Nightingale
by AmericanKittyKat
Summary: "Shizu-chan, those black feathers aren't just from wayward birds. Sometimes they know that even though they aren't wanted, it's much warmer to be closer to humans." Shizaya.
1. Chapter 1

Nightingale

Chapter 1: _Search for the Missing_

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><p>It was a few months ago, that Ikebukuro was peaceful as the town could be. Four months ago, the most violent public display was Shizuo launching a vending machine to the laughing informant. People, cops, humans, and the people now deep in the new "Ikebukuro" wanted that back. Murder had been on the rise, and Ikebukuro has become a populated ghost town. Gangs had grown vicious, and people often had been killed for just accidentally crossing gang lines.<p>

The police had claimed all out war against the gangs. While it had created more jobs, meaning more people coming to the city, it also meant another rise on the death counter. Ikebukuro was going to hell, and taking innocents along with it. Some captured gang members swore they heard a song of violence that called them to arms. No one believed it, but everyone started to say it.

The song only heard at night.

_Hospital Room 409_

"Shizuo, this wasn't your fault." The man sighed a little, glad that Shizuo cared, but not enough to possibly level the hospital.

"Tch. If I didn't go take the call from my brother, you wouldn't have been jumped."

"You took a call from your brother. Which I told you to. We couldn't help this."

"Still."

"Shizuo." He said sternly, giving a small smile. "I'm beat up a little bit, but I'm alright. Go home, take a break, we don't have any jobs until my leg is healed."

The blonde's fingers twitched, itching for a cigarette as he looked at Tom helplessly in the hospital bed. The man had gotten jumped by a group of thugs, and Shizuo chased them off moments later, but the pipe to the man's leg had put him out of commission. He was lucky nothing else happened, but this was Tom. Tom wasn't allowed to get hurt. He seemed cheery despite having his leg hooked up like a turkey with that halter.

"You know, one of the thugs asked, if you had killed Izaya."

Shizuo's eyebrow twitched at the name, but the silence was loud enough to Tom to guess he wanted to know why.

"They said it was your fault, if you killed him that the city was going to hell. We know that's all untrue."

"If I killed that flea, I would be in jail. He's too blood sucking to let me out on the streets if I did happen to wring his neck."

"I know." Tom nodded.

"Tch. Flea was always good in fucking up things. He probably fucked it up to make sure no one could live without him." Shizuo huffed, the mere thought of the flea sending rage through his body. He hated the flea so much.

But even he was smart enough to realize that with Izaya there, there was no one to make them suspicious of each other. Even the cops dragged him in and told him that they needed Izaya. The flea was that charming he supposed. With a mental growl, he wanted to throw something to the ground and step on it. The blond never did care for people wanting the flea. He was a dirty bastard.

Shinra even asked if he killed Izaya. Celty probably had her suspicions. He didn't kill the bloody louse. If he did, he would be proudly stating so, but keeping everyone else out of it. Tom got beat up because the stupid flea hadn't been screwing with people's lives. This would be what it was like when the flea was actually gone. Was he even gone? When he did run into his sisters, they said that he was alive. Though they hadn't talked to him.

Scowling further, he swore that he was going to go find that flea tonight and put him back to work. He wasn't going to sit here and let Tom and other innocent people be threatened by violence! "I'm going to go find that louse and put him back to work wrecking 'bukuro." He then snorted. Tom blinked, but didn't seem horridly surprised. "I'm not surprised that you said that. I hope you can find him. Despite what he did, he made our job easier."

Sighing he tilted his head in a small goodbye as he bid the man goodbye. "See you tomorrow." As he walked out the door, he slid his hands into his pockets. In one he fingered his lighter and in the other the phone he was going to call Celty on. Maybe she could help. The debt collector knew that she didn't like Shinra going on so many bad jobs. Apparently they were in something they couldn't tell him.

He just didn't want those two to get hurt. After all they were his only friends. Though Shinra offering him a prostate exam did quite cross the boundaries of friends. Quite a giant leap across the drawn line. He could spray it in spray paint and that crazy doctor would probably still cross it with no issue. Ignoring a woman who squeaked and ducked behind a corner he walked out the electric doors and pulled out his phone.

Texting the headless rider wasn't exactly foreign lately. They met much more often, because of the issues. Trading bits of information. It wasn't exactly enough for the two go on.

'_We're going to go find the flea'. _

It took a few minutes for her to respond, which he had lit up a cigarette and blew the smoke through his lips more than a dozen times. Hospitals weren't something he liked being a five mile radius near, none the less five feet away from the door. He really hospitals. Shizuo let out a small relieved sigh, letting the cigarette hang from his lips as he squinted at the screen.

_[Good. I'm tired of Shinra dealing with these thugs. I don't like Izaya, but he's necessary right now.]_

So he wasn't the only one who thought it? Well at least he didn't feel too odd going to find the flea. Who knows where the stupid louse even was? He hoped that it was somewhere near. Ikebukuro even, because he really didn't want to waste time going after his enemy. Letting out another puff of smoke, he texted back.

'_Sucks. I'll be near the hospital. You'll see me.' _

With that the debt collector started to walk closer to the street without a care. Izaya wasn't what he wanted to deal with, but like hell he was going to sit here and let Ikebukuro go to hell because he left business unfinished. Gritting his teeth a little, the blond let out a low growl. "Fucking flea. This is your entire fault." Shinra and Celty probably didn't even give a care about Izaya either, but they all needed him.

This was what he wanted wasn't it? As he left the parking lot, the fresh grass crushed below his feet, he heard something…singing. Looking over to the car that was stopped at a turn, he heard a male's voice singing. It must have been the radio, since only a few seconds after, it clicked to a newscaster saying, "Another hit from Nightingale!" then a commercial about burgers or something.

Shizuo really didn't have the patience to sit there and wonder what the heck it was, since Celty sped up moments later. Giving a small nod as she gestured to the back of the motorcycle, he got on the back. He always felt awkward on the motorcycle, but he never really told Celty. It always felt like he was riding a horse, not a motorcycle.

Shadows wrapped around his head seconds later in a helmet, and he held on as they shot off. Honestly, they had no idea where the flea was, so it was going to take some time. Shizuo and Celty had tried before to find Izaya few times before they had given up for just talking. They were going to find the louse this time.

The roof that Izaya hung out at? He wasn't there.

The streets? Shizuo didn't smell him.

City Park? Shizuo couldn't smell him either, and Celty didn't see him when she skirted around the area with her motorbike.

Shizuo however caught a hint of a familiar smell and bolted towards the series of alley ways. Either someone just put out rotting fish with a hint of the prideful skulking smell, or Izaya was around there somewhere. He grinned; he was going to pummel that louse into the ground. Shizuo's eyes narrowed as his body nagged at him. He was out of shape from not chasing the flea across Ikebukuro. Though that wasn't surprising.

Bodies weren't supposed to run that much unless they were bugs.

A song was grating against his eardrums as well. Who played a song like that at night? It sounded like crying. Gritting his teeth, he tried to block the sorrowful song out of his head, but it was something that kept burrowing deeper and deeper until he had to live with it. Gulping a little he felt something hit his heart, but nothing was there. He wasn't even going to pay attention to it.

Celty followed after him moments later, he heard the familiar neigh of her motorcycle. Shooter she called it. Still felt like he was riding a horse. Finally the scent grew strong enough where he stopped. "I know you're here flea! Get the hell out here!" There was no response. The bastard was probably just laughing at him.

Gritting his teeth, he peered around each corner, his grin widening as he stalked closer to that mop of black hair he was so used to seeing. However when he got a better look, his heart dropped into his stomach. Not that it was care of seeing the flea of all people looking like a skeleton, but that someone could be that thin. Was he even alive?

The body that was huddled against the wall was pathetic. He looked hollow, no meat on his bones that the debt collector could even see. He was curled up so tightly that Shizuo wondered if his bony ass knees went through his chest. Seeing him, made the music start to get louder, and Shizuo growled softly. That music would never shut up would it?

"Oi. Flea."

No response. The almost stark white body seemed to mock him somehow. It looked like one touch would shatter the man's body to shreds. Old wounds had been crusted in blood, and the dark color was almost a spotlight. He heard Celty's footsteps behind him and the startled stop he heard told him that she wasn't expecting it either.

Grimacing, he really didn't want to touch the body, but he did either way, and put two fingers under his neck. His eyes widened a minute fraction as he felt soft skin. Weren't dead bodies supposed to have slimy skin or something? The mocking face the both saw was a pathetic small grimace of pain. He wasn't sure how to even look at the flea's face with the intent to murder.

You couldn't murder that looked so helpless. One touch would break his skull into splinters. Shizuo suddenly was hyper aware of his strength as he focused on trying to find a pulse. Feeling its weak beat against his fingers he sighed, in relief or annoyance he didn't know.

"He's alive. We need to get him back to Shinra."

He gave a glance back at the headless rider, and she nodded stepping forward to encase the informant in her shadows, awkwardly making sure she didn't bounce him around too much. He could tell from the stiffness in the rider's body that she was nervous. Well he wasn't nervous, just mostly confused and a bit pissed off. Who the heck starves the flea like that? He didn't think that the flea couldn't deserve anything thrown at him…but starvation seemed…the least suitable thing for a skeleton like him.

He was already skinny.

Of course he pushed away the thought that starvation was something that made his skin crawl, and not even the flea deserved it.

Shinra greeted them, but with the news Shizuo gave him, he seemed panicked. He probably was thinking of all the things he had to do to get the flea back on the streets. Izaya looked smaller then ever, as if his jacket was five times too big for him, and the bony hands were no longer slender, it looked like someone had just stretched skin over bones. The sight sickened him. He hated it. The flea shouldn't look like that.

Celty carried him to the room, and Shinra shooed them out as he tried to get Izaya somewhat back on the road to not looking like a corpse. Shizuo sat down on the couch, and Celty went to the back for something. It was all up to Shinra now. Shizuo however wanted to sleep. That song while it grated on his nerves…it made him calm. As if he didn't need to throw something if someone pissed him off. Leaning his head backwards, he felt the song only get louder and louder, lulling him to sleep. He swore he was going crazy though. Shizuo felt fingers running through his hair, and a small chuckle as he snored lightly into dreamland.

Shizuo was startled awake four hours later as Shinra stomped into the kitchen and kept whining about something. He tried to listen, but after hearing a word that was over 18 letters long, he tuned Shinra out completely. Celty was looking towards the kitchen, and he realized the TV was on.

"That man has the most infuriating veins in the world!" Shinra whined as he filled a glass with water and joined him on the couch. "Now when he was healthy it was bad enough. I had to prick him like 6 times because he had thin veins. It's like his veins were saying 'Hahaha Shinra! I was there, but now I'm over here!' Gah." The man pouted and sipped on his water, apparently ignoring the two blank looks being aimed towards him.

Because Shizuo had no idea what Shinra was talking about, despite being totally in agreement with whatever part of the fleas anatomy he was talking about, and Celty, amused.

"What?" He voiced for the both of them, almost inwardly regretting the curious question immediately.

"Izaya. He has the worst veins in the world. I swear I need to make him drink five liters of water a day for the man's veins to be possibly healthy. If it's hereditary, I swear he has but put on this earth to annoy everyone trying to get an IV in him. It took me 30 minutes to get an IV into him with fluids! His body is so desperately in need of them, that if he wasn't in the state he was in I would it him for giving me a headache. Sticky veins my-"

"Shinra." Shizuo said bluntly, wishing the doctor would shut up.

"Right-Right. Izaya…as bluntly put was a few moments, if not hours away from death. To be honest he should already be dead. I've never seen a human body survive through that much withheld nutria- food and water." He corrected himself. "To be honest it's a medical miracle he's still alive. I'm not even sure how you found a pulse. He should be dead. Whoever did this to him, since I know Izaya would never let himself get like this, had probably let him starve for…at least over a week?"

The news somehow made Shizuo more upset than he should have been. Was it just because someone had the idea to starve someone? It made him sick.

"However…the broken arm, and the bruises. The wounds too. Those are much older, and the recent ones only make the older ones worse. The oldest guessing injury that I could put a time to was a month ago. There are more, that I could hypothesi- guess that have been there longer than a month." Shinra looked tired, and Shizuo realized that seeing anyone in that condition put a toll on him, just like it did them.

Celty's phone flashed suddenly and he looked up. Squinting he read out the letters.

[Why would someone do this to another person? Izaya wouldn't even make someone starve to death.]

She did have a point. While Izaya made that girl jump off a roof, -though Celty saved her-, he didn't seem to target people's body physically. In fact all he played were mind-fuckery games. So whoever did this was somehow sicker than Izaya himself.

Shinra sighed a little, probably having the same thought. "While Izaya is a cruel sadist…I don't think even he deserved this. It's painful. It's more painful than I could even dream of. Izaya, while he deserved a lot of things, he didn't deserve to be almost starved to death because someone got mad." He gave a glance to the blond debt collector and he scowled.

"He deserves to die, but he doesn't deserve to be starved."

"Same thing Shizuo. He was about to die. I didn't know if I had to show you. This is what you want from Izaya. His death."

Celty frowned typing something, but Shinra spoke again.

"I don't mind if you want to kill Izaya, but I want to make sure you realize what you are going to do to him. You're going to take the life of someone. Whoever did this was a sick bastard, and from the injuries I can tell that it was in a method, everything had a purpose. Every break, every cut. I picked out piece of barbed wire from his ankles." The doctor sounded angry.

"Whoever did this deserves much worse than you could ever think Izaya deserved. While physically he may recover, we have no idea what mental torture he was put through. I've only read about these cases. Do you know why Shizuo?" He paused, if waiting for a answer, but before Shizuo could open his mouth, he continued. "Because they all die Shizuo."

Celty had finally finished typing, and shone her phone again.

[Shizuo would never do that to Izaya.]

"I know he wouldn't. But he wants to murder Izaya doesn't he? This is what he wants. I'm surprised he saved him."

Shizuo snarled, standing up. "Shinra!" He snapped, tired of the accusation. Yes, he wanted to kill the flea, yes he wanted the flea to be in pain; yes he thought the flea should get what he deserved. However, no one deserved to be tortured and starved, because he knew while Izaya was a bastard, all three of the people here, knew he would never resort to such things. "I'm not going to kill the flea right now, and stop thinking I will. If I'm going to kill him, which I will since he's a bastard, I'll wait till he's good enough to fight back!"

"What if he never is good enough Shizuo?" Shinra stared at him almost saddened.

"Then I won't kill him. I have morals."

Shinra raised an eyebrow obviously questioning that but shrugged. "Just wanted to make sure you knew the volume of what you were promising. Izaya…will take a long time to heal. I'll probably have to transfer him to a hospital. I don't know if I can heal him here. Not with those extensive injuries."

Sighing, Shizuo sat back down on the couch. He wasn't as angry as he thought he would be. That song was still singing, but instead of sorrow…it sounded happy. It warmed his heart. Huffing softly, he looked towards the doctor once more before staring at the TV.

They were all more affected than they could think. He was going to punch the louse when he woke up.

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><p>AN:<p>

I apologize in advance if my Shizuo is crappy. XD This was the first time I wrote him for more than two sentences. This does advance quite quickly, these chapters anyways. I've only wrote up to chapter three, so I'm unsure if I'll write any more if people dislike it. XD Review if you like it, cause I'll post more chapters ASAP.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Nightingale**_

**Chapter 2: "Bones and Blood"**

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><p>It had been four days since Izaya had been found. His condition unsurprisingly didn't improve very much. Shizuo had done nothing but really go visit Tom to tell him the wonderful news, walk around the city, and stop by Shinra's. At first, it was morbid curiosity driving Shizuo to see Izaya.<p>

This is what the man he hated looked like when he was at his weakest. It made him angry, but curious, to who could ever do such a thing. The flea was always a prideful son of a bitch, and seeing him this pathetic, sickened him. Plus that damned humming always following him around made it seem like he was addicted.

The song that he heard, he guessed that he was the only one who heard it. It wasn't exactly a song, more like chanting. He had no idea what the words were, in fact he didn't think he cared to figure it out. At first, it was sorrowful. He equated it to the one time he heard a woman cry on the TV about her murdered son. It was full of angst, hurt, and a dash of sleepless dreams. When he went home, he would hear it at night and it would lull him to sleep. If it turned silent, he grew antsy.

He thought it was Izaya's fault. That hearing whatever on earth that song was from before was making him hear it now. It wouldn't completely be out of range, Celty had no head. At this point, anything was possible for Ikebukuro and he wouldn't blink. The blond sighed, staring into the mirror. His hair was a bit ragged since the last time he cut it, and he knew he was going to have it dyed soon.

Fingering a lock between his calloused fingers he gave a small sigh. Just seeing his healthy hands, it shot back to Izaya's thin frail ones, he swore he could see each and every bone. His pale skin was even paler, and he had no color to his face. Even when they ran across Ikebukuro, there was color in his face, even when that bastard was taunting him.

Letting go of his hair, and gripping his hands on the sink, Shizuo felt as if he was at a loss. Izaya, his rival, his enemy, the bastard that made Kasuka upset that he lost his job, he couldn't kill. He looked too much like every body else. Those red eyes he hated seeing smirk at him were shut tight, blood crusted around them, from the injuries somewhere in his hairline.

Shinra cleaned him up as best as possible, but he still saw that damn body. He looked pathetic, cold, alone, and _dead_. Shinra said he fished out pieces of barbed wire. Who…would put someone through that? He swore that he would even help that stupid louse get revenge. Who the fuck would sit there and do that to someone? It pissed him off!

Snarling, he turned and walked straight out of his house, reminding himself to lock the door, and he was off to go see Shinra, Celty, and Izaya once again.

Shinra waved a cheery greeting, ushering him in. Celty gave a nod and Shizuo paid a visit to Izaya. Shutting the door, he stared at the upturned face with a small sigh. "Flea, would you hurry up and get better?" Closing his eyes he walked closer, threading his fingers through his hair, he gave a grunt. "We all hate dealing with you like this." Shizuo looked down, and flinched backwards. Izaya…was just staring at him. Those eyes were more vibrant blood red glittering like a snake. Blinking, he saw Izaya was no better than before, his eyes closed. Scratching his head blankly he muttered, "I swear. Flea I'm going to punch you when you get better." He was interrupted by the black haired male as he popped his head in.

"Shizuo." Stepping through the door, followed by Celty who seemed to look anywhere but Izaya, he sat down on the chair next to the bed. "I think I need to send him to a hospital." He said. Shizuo sighed, immediately retorting, "He'll get better here. I don't want anyone to kidnap him again. I already wasted time finding him."

Celty finally chimed in, her phone shining a bit.

_[It's not something we can discuss right now. It's only been a few days. Didn't you say his breathing was easier Shinra?]_

"Yes, my darling. You were listening~!"

The phone was shoved two inches away from his face, and Shizuo guessed it was something only amusing to Shinra since he laughed.

"I think he'll be fine. You'll get him back on his louse feet and scurrying around like a cockroach in no time."

"Shizuo, I'm not sure to be complimented or insulted that you think so highly of my medical skills."

"Well even Izaya compliments you."

Shinra let out an unmanly squeak as he flung himself forward at the new voice. Celty's scythe appeared in a flash of smoke as she pointed it to the intruder. The intruder was a somewhat tall man, bright blond hair and tanned skin. Bright, almost unnaturally blue eyes stared at them amused, if not playfully. He was wearing a collared white shirt with dark blue jeans; some type of pattern Shizuo could care less about wrapping up one of the pant legs.

He thought it was leaves.

Shizuo jumped back a little, but glared at the new comer, obviously a bit ticked.

"My name is Eagle. I'm one of Izaya's friends." The blond male said. "I'm here to help him get a bit better. I got him into this mess, and I'm going to drag him out of it."

"What do you mean?" Shinra had already composed himself, and with a grunt, Shizuo silently echoed the question. "You don't think the barbed wire, the starvation, and the almost dying part was to be with his favorite humans now did you?" Eagle didn't seem as chipper, but as he leaned against the white wall, his hands in his pockets, the man didn't seem interested in them.

"Izaya was dragged into this once more, because I showed up. He tried to get me out of there, and ended up getting caught himself. The ego on the man obviously blinded him." With a small eye roll he continued. "We knew each other a long time ago. Before he became the skinny little stick he is today." He pushed himself off the wall, Celty's scythe following him.

"The flea doesn't have 'friends'."

"The flea you think he is doesn't. He's become a bit of an asshole."

"A bit?" Shizuo snorted, in disbelief.

"Well he was always a strange child." With that Eagle walked closer to Izaya, Celty swinging her scythe out to just brush by Izaya's sleeping face, aiming for the man's arm. However it passed right through it. "How did you even get in here?"

"Because I was always here. When you carried Izaya, you carried me. Tell me, do you hear his song? It's right now so quiet you can barely hear it, isn't that right?"

"So I wasn't going crazy." Shinra commented, and Shizuo's eyes widened. He wasn't the only one hearing it. "You too?" Shizuo echoed. Celty awkwardly fidgeted, and Shinra spoke for her. "She heard it too, that's coming from Izaya?"

"Yes. It's his curse I'm afraid. Normally he can keep that song to himself, but right now he's broadcasting it over the city."

"…How?" Shizuo sighed, a little annoyed. "That flea has been annoying me with that song the whole time after I found him? Can't he shut his stupid mouth?"

Eagle blinked, before laughing slightly and held his hand over Celty's scythe, to Izaya's chest. "Let's give him an antidote then."

Before the other two men, or the Dullahan had a chance to react, his hand glowed bright blue, in a misty miasma type of color and Izaya's body responded, gaining a slight red glow of the same. Shizuo stared at the body next to him in curiosity as he saw one of the scratches on his cheek slowly heal up and disappear. His golden-mocha eyes widened behind his sunglasses.

The blond heard Shinra behind him make a humming sound, but he wasn't sure why. The guy was healing the louse with…shiny sparkly weirdo things.

Somehow this all made sense. In an insane mind, which Shizuo didn't have; Izaya would probably understand it perfectly though. The thought made Shizuo's teeth grind together slightly. "What are you doing?" Shinra chirped from behind him. "Is it an energy transfer?"

Taking his hand away the shiny miasma disappeared like someone blew a gust of wind at it. "In a way, yes. I'm not sure what to call it. It was his energy in the first place; he gave it to me so I could escape." The blond man in front of Shizuo shrugged. "So…the flea…gave you something?" Shizuo tried to follow, and Eagle nodded.

Giving a glance off to the side, he saw Celty typing on her phone, showing it to the intruder. Did no one really care that this guy just came out of nowhere? Or was it just Shizuo?

"Hm? Yeah. I am. Dullahan right? He talked about you, kindly I may add. You seem to be on his good side. Since you're closer to the other side, you can hear it clearer than the other two." Seeing himself gestured at, yet he had no damn idea what anyone was talking about was frustrating him.

"So…the singing is a side-effect…I wonder if anything else in his body is different."

"It isn't, Shinra. He's just as human as you are. The curse is what makes him slightly different. Just like the brute is over there." Jabbing a thumb in Shizuo's direction made him growl a little.

"Stop using the same words as the louse." He growled.

Holding his hands up in a placating gesture he laughed. "Sorry….Shizuo I believe. Izaya mostly calls you Shizu-chan. You seem to hear it just as well as the Dullahan though. Interesting."

"So, what is the curse?" Shinra had walked up to Izaya, checking his face, enraptured with the wounds that were now mostly healed, but yet still had a faint mark on the pale skin.

"I can't tell you that I'm afraid, not because I don't want to, but I'm bound not to. I'll come here again, and give Izaya more antidote, so he'll be out faster. Don't put him in a hospital. I'll even sweeten the deal for you. Izaya over here, his curse, creates something very interesting, and when he's awake, I'll make sure he gives you one. I'm not sure he'll be happy, but it's something that would be unexplainable by normal science."

Shinra stood up, pressing his glasses up on his nose. "You've never met a scientist like me. I'll explain it in no time."

"I can bet you that you won't, but let's see how you fare."

Shizuo could be having an internal puppet show, and they wouldn't notice. His lip twitched slightly, but before he could say anything, he heard a small breathy laugh that sounded familiar. Blinking, he looked at Shinra, he was still babbling on about something being the best doctor in modern medicine. Celty just watched the two curiously, not seemed surprised at it.

..So was it just him that heard that laugh?

He hoped it wasn't. Because if he was, he was going to punch that louse so hard he flew to the other side of Ikebukuro.

"You all could help him you know." Shizuo perked up, anything to get the flea back to monitoring the city. He…really hated thinking that. He wanted the flea dead, not screwing up people's lives like normal. "If you could love a monster, if you could love someone you hate." Eagle chuckled.

"I give you this warning. If Izaya is captured again, Ikebukuro will be razed to the ground, and the infection that has started will start getting stronger and attack other cities. Death after death will be on your head." His eyes darkened, and Shizuo felt like he was being threatened, by a over protective dog. "Protect him, even if you dislike him, because if you don't, everyone you hold dear in this retched city will die."

With a laugh, he waved his hand, and his body faded and with a blink it was gone.

Shizuo threw his head back and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Fucking flea. Making this confusing as hell." He snapped.

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><p>It had been a few days later, when Shizuo started to hear that song again, louder, and it never faded. Sometimes it went to the back of his mind, but yet it never stayed away for long. It…had become calming. Visiting Tom didn't want to make him smash everything to bits. Gang members who jeered at him from the other side of the street didn't piss him off as much.<p>

It…was like that song was keeping him calm in the strangest way possible. He wasn't ever going to be in debt to the flea, but even that damn song of his helped him. It pissed him off. Izaya was sick, and while healing, still looked like a lifeless doll. He couldn't confront the furred-jacket black haired man. (He realized it was actually brunette almost black, since he's been able to see close up.)

It was strange. That song…had Izaya always sung it? Was he even singing it? Was it something else? Eagle didn't even say anything about it. All he said was to protect Izaya, and it honestly irked him. He didn't want to protect the louse, he only wanted to get the city back to normal and he didn't want Tom hurt anymore. In fact he could care less, if Izaya went and jumped off a building.

However despite saying that, he felt like it was a lie.

He still didn't care for the flea, Shizuo didn't know if he ever could. The louse got him run over by a car, twice he may add, and forgiveness didn't come to him easily. However Shizuo couldn't kill something that sounded like a lost bird. It sounded alone, hurt, and sometimes happy. It was like a bird was playing everywhere he went and he wasn't sure if he could ignore it ever again. Did he ignore it in the first place?

All this thinking was making his head hurt, yet he needed to think about it because he was going to get in deeper shit if he didn't. The flea was always teasing him that he couldn't even keep up with him, well he was! So there! It was a hollow victory, since he wasn't able to shove it in the flea's face. Stupid idiot.

Was…this ever going to end?

He swore something was following him too. Looking over his shoulder, he saw nothing, but he felt like he was being stared at. It wasn't the same stare that the flea would stalk him with either. It was something much crueler, which was saying something.

* * *

><p>Celty closed the door glad Shinra had finally headed to take a nap. He was tired out, and after running test on Izaya to see if he was inhuman which turned out negative, he had fallen asleep wondering what he could be. The headless woman stared at the motionless body her fingers twitching. She could hear that song so clear, and it rung in her non-existent ears.<p>

She awkwardly moved closer, sitting next to Izaya's head her fingers hesitantly touching his forehead. With no response, she rested her palm on the red-eyed man's forehead. She…didn't like the song. She didn't know why, but she just kept having thought and thought of a small child, maybe 5-6 years old crying. He never stopped crying.

The song always reminded her of something, the crying, but she could never remember the face. He was cold to the touch, and she smoothed back some of his hair from his face. It had grown longer than the last time she saw it. It surprised her she could even remember that it was shorter, since it had only grown a inch or two. She didn't pay much attention to the way he looked besides his eyes. Those soulless eyes, that bore into her 'eyes' and made her want to cringe. It was a demon in a human body.

It scared her that a human could possess so much human. It was alien. Not the little green aliens that terrified her, but a alien like human. A abnormality. Izaya was different than other humans, but so was Shizuo. Shizuo in strength…bur Izaya was on a different field completely on a mental status. It was like he held the emotion of thousands, in one glance. It was powerful, intimidating.

She saw reasons why people were afraid of him.

But this crying, this horrible high pitched screaming couldn't come from him. It sounded like a lost and alone child crying for its mother that would never awaken.

That's what scared her.

Someone like Izaya shouldn't make her feel motherly. She didn't even know it was possible to feel something other than indifference, annoyance, and sometimes the amusement of how he acted. She felt like she had to hug him, tell the little boy that he wasn't alone in this world. It wasn't Izaya she wanted to comfort; at least she tried to tell herself that. It was Izaya though.

This was Izaya's song.

She heard it differently than the other two. Shinra heard classical, which only made him smile and twiddle his thumbs randomly in the middle of a sentence. Shizuo described a haunting melody that enveloped him. Calmed him down. She could only guess, that Izaya's song was something that resonated different parts of people.

Was this on purpose? Did he always let out this sorrowful crying melody? It was if he was hiccupping a melody, a lullaby. It was strange. He didn't play people's emotion like this. Even as she pushed away the feelings when she heard a sharp cry, pushing away the primal urge to fling whatever she was doing, to go protect her child, Izaya wasn't her child.

Petting his hair back, her heart broke when she heard the melody change to a happy-sorrow filled chant. Did…this monster really feel human emotions?

Was it their fault they let this child cry?

Was it their fault that they didn't hear this song before?

Shizuo was right. Izaya was complicated, and she didn't know if she could understand.

* * *

><p>AN:<p>

Thank you so much for the reviews and the story alerts. It means a lot. XD Again with the trying out characters things, Celty I've never wrote either. Just so it's apparent, the song they are all hearing, are different.


	3. Chapter 3

**Nightingale**

_**Chapter 3: "Songs of Mystery"**_

* * *

><p>Shinra hummed to himself, rubbing one of his eyes under the black framed glasses. He had kept himself up, studying Izaya's vitals. This curse wasn't a human one for sure. Shizuo's was, making it easy to figure out. Folding his hands together, he rested his chin on them, staring at the paper below. It was Izaya's blood type, and analysis. He had a blood type of O, and even fit the personality of one.<p>

Strong, out going, self-reliant, social butterflies, and they said that O types were good with getting information with all five senses. Chuckling a little to himself, he realized that he once read that they had strong immune systems, and a well developed body. Izaya had a horrid immune system, since he never did eat right. He knew Izaya ate too little, and he knew that he was bad off if he kept driving himself into a hole.

He however didn't think that something could cause this. The energy transfer of what he saw was beyond him at the moment. Izaya had something he couldn't figure out. This bothered him, to an almost annoying point. Izaya was even annoying when in a coma. Falling back, letting the reclining chair catch him, he pinched the bridge of his nose, under his glasses.

This wasn't his fault, he knew, but sitting here while a 'friend' was a skeleton wasn't exactly therapeutic. Izaya was a monster, much more than Shizuo could ever dream to become. However a monster didn't deserve to be starved and tortured. Izaya had never killed a person, despite what people thought, and he could tell that the red eyed man didn't even care about relationships beyond things that benefited him.

Seeing Izaya, the strong bull-headed genius, a prodigy in his own right rot away in a coma was honestly hard to see. Who could do this to him? He didn't doubt that someone could, or that someone would hold back on him. However he knew Izaya to fight until the last breath. Though this Eagle man stated that Izaya got caught because of him. Eagle, didn't seem any different than the others.

What was important about him? The ability to heal Izaya? Was that something that existed? Izaya would take advantage of that in a heartbeat. What on earth had Izaya gotten him into? Not only that, Eagle knew him probably before he did, which meant he was already in this a long time ago, and no one noticed. This made him feel a bit guilty in a way. He knew Izaya before Shizuo did, and before Celty did.

No matter what he did, Izaya accepted him. He could never do anything that surprised the man. Yet the twenty-three year old information broker surprised him again and again. He sighed quietly once more. Shinra never did like not knowing something. Izaya's song to him was classical music. Hearing Celty speak of it as a child crying unsettled him. That meant they heard two different things, and Izaya…wasn't as stable as he thought he was.

He guessed that they all heard something that attacked part of their emotional makeup. He had to hear classical most of his life, and he enjoyed it. Celty, he knew that she was as motherly as a Dullahan could be, his darling could never be a better mother. Shizuo's, from what he guessed, was something calming. Something the opposite of what Izaya tried to do all these years. Sighing quietly, he shook his head.

Izaya was a confusing one alright. This plot, this storyline they had wound themselves up in was dangerous. He knew it, he sensed it. The black haired doctor knew that he had to protect Izaya, because he had no doubt that Eagle's threat was real. However what made Izaya the main point in the plot? While Izaya was important, and probably knew half of the city's secrets, even that couldn't have caused this.

Izaya…was something. Was something human and was something inhuman at the same time. He was the cause of this, and he was going to be the solution. Whether that solution ended in peril for Ikebukuro or saving the city, he had no idea. Izaya was their clue and their hope at this point. Shinra didn't want to think that Izaya was their only hope, but with Eagle showing up, he had a nagging feeling that the informant was going to be their last hope.

"Neh, neh, don't hurt yourself wandering around alone in that brain of yours, Shinra."

His eyes shooting open in shock, he turned to the door to expect the informant to be standing there, but the door was closed…and it didn't look any different from when he closed it earlier. Groaning, Shinra's hands slipped under his glasses and covered over his eyes. He was going insane. Thinking of Izaya actually however made him feel better. He didn't forget that irritating person that they all somewhat cared about.

He knew Shizuo even cared about Izaya somewhat. Maybe not enough to stop him from killing him normally, but he didn't think Shizuo could actually kill Izaya. The same thing applied to Izaya though. Shinra didn't think Izaya could kill Shizuo. They were in some odd yin-yang fight that they needed each other for their game. Shizuo could let all his strength loose on the red eyed devil, and the devil found him interesting.

Deciding to finally hit the hay, he stood up from his chair and walked to the door, expecting to see empty space in the hallway, but opening the door revealed a Dullahan walking by. Blinking, awake, Shinra poked his head out and opened his mouth to ask why she was awake when she stopped. Seeming shocked out of whatever trance she was in, she stared him curiously.

"Celty? Why are you up? You should be dreaming about our house in Ireland when we get married!" He teased, expecting an elbow to the stomach. However when it didn't come, he saw her shaky hand show him her cell phone.

_[He's…crying.] _

Narrowing his eyes a little, he sighed. Izaya again, and from what he guessed his Celty was hearing, it was his crying again. He thought to himself, 'Seriously Izaya? Worrying her this much? You shouldn't worry her at all.' However his thought was cut short as the front door opened.

…Shizuo?

The blond stared at him before flailing slightly and pointing surprised. "What the fuck are you doing in my bathroom?" He disgruntled squawk came to a surprise to Shinra. This…was his house. But the scenery behind Shizuo…wasn't the hallway. "You're in my house." He responded dryly before adding, "But…if you didn't sleepwalk…"

"I seriously just came into my bathroom!" Shizuo snapped, gesturing to his room behind him. "What the hell is going on?"

A chilling laugh startled them both.

Then the singing started, and their blood ran cold. It was a shrieking, haunting melody.

Izaya.

Celty reacted first and he swore the Dullahan body language said, "It's okay now, you can stop crying." But he would have to be going crazy.

Without a second thought he followed after her, and Shizuo stomping right behind. What he saw standing in his living room, staring out the windows, was Izaya. That…was impossible though…he couldn't unhook himself from the machines, the IV's, and all that without alerting him. So how…?

The informant's hands suddenly spread out, and he felt one of his lungs jolt, as if it was hit. Clutching his chest, Shinra's eyes widened to the extent they could as he felt Izaya's scream pierce through every part of his body. Was it even a scream? That haunting sobbing cry sounded like Izaya's voice, but one thousand backing up in an echo that made him feel surrounded.

He couldn't even look up at Celty or Shizuo.

He…hated this voice. What could he do to make that unearthly sound stop?

* * *

><p>Celty at first thought she was dreaming, because she saw a smile being aimed at her in the shadows. It was a short smile, as if it was purely smiling just at something that just amused itself. She sat up, staring at the shadows one of her fingers twitching out of pure habit. She didn't know why on earth she felt so on edge. It was just a smile, and it was no longer there.<p>

It was just a dream. Though that smile reminded her of Izaya. Was…that part of his curse or something? She felt unearthly tones about him, but she just thought that was because he was a bastard. However, what kind of creature was he? A cursed human? She heard of it before, many times before. She however didn't know what could match Izaya exactly.

She at first thought it might be a cursed item, or someone cursed Izaya directly and recently. However just looking at him, she couldn't even tell. She didn't honestly want to uncover something so deep about the information broker. He was always a mysterious figure that she could never crack. She felt intimidated by the brunette-black haired human. While he was only a few inches taller than her, she felt so small around him.

He was intimidating. Celty knew that if she had something to hold over the informant's head, she might feel better, but unlike Shizuo and Shinra, she knew that something was rooted deep inside him that **wasn't **human. They all assured her that was normal, but…they were now wrong. It wasn't as if Izaya was powerful, but he certainly was a threat.

However she didn't feel so intimidated when that voice was crying in her heart. A small little red eyed boy, sobbing and crying for his mother and father. Celty could hear him, and she…couldn't hurt something fragile. Was it an act? She…didn't know humans could act so well. Quietly she pushed the covers off her body and stood up, feeling the room shift around her, even without her seeing it.

Izaya…was crying, but it wasn't for her. She didn't feel attached as if she was his mother, but more of a motherly instinct to protect a crying child. She asked Shinra about Izaya's parents, but that didn't show much. His mother and father were very much alive, if not just disinterested in their sons doings. She felt some pity for Izaya, because obviously something happened to make him this way, but seeing what he could do, that pity just turned to acceptance.

She couldn't change Izaya.

She didn't really have any idea about Izaya. This surprised her after all this time, being somewhat close to him. She really didn't know anything about the informant. She knew he loved ootoro, humans, and enjoyed playing with Shizuo, but she supposed that's all she really knew. Celty didn't think that she wouldn't even care about Izaya if he wasn't a skeleton a few doors down.

Humans, Izaya especially seemed so strong, but in this state, one touch felt like it would break them. She saw the barbed wire that Shinra had dug out of Izaya, and she felt nauseous to her stomach. The large metal spikes were covered in blood. She swore she saw a piece of skin on one of them. Humans went through so much pain that it amazed her.

Hearing the crying stop suddenly sent her on edge. Her body moved towards where Izaya's room was specifically. The deep voice, Izaya's voice, she heard clearly. She could see his red eyes almost shining in the shadows of that side of the room and it sent a shiver up her spine. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but all she could hear was shrieking laughter.

Jumping to her feet, they dazedly led her out into the hallway. The laughing got louder and louder to the point she would have covered her ears if she could. However before too long the laughing turned to a sobbing mess, off kilter. She distantly realized Shinra came up behind her, and she typed out a message about him crying.

There was something swirling in her shadows that she didn't know and it was getting lower and louder, heavier and heavier, and all she could feel was Izaya's emotions, and sobbing of two, then five, then dozens, then she swore she could hear hundreds. However they were melded together and overlapped with Izaya's voice that was much more defined.

As if the crying that she was hearing behind his voice was just an echo.

The only thing that came to her mind was stopping that crying. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it!

Her body ran out of her own control, and she ran into the living room, watching the man she swore was comatose starting to sing. It was…soft, sweet. Celty heard violins, and she crazily thought that Izaya was chanting in a non-sense language, but with the violins it was a beautiful melody. It lifted her and higher, as if it was making her soar though the sky.

What…was Izaya?

* * *

><p>Shizuo had gone home, reluctantly from the hospital since Tom was talkative today. He still was being paid thank god, but he supposed he actually wanted to work for his money. It was just a moral thing he guessed. He left it slip to Tom that Izaya was in bad shape. Tom actually showed a little concern towards the flea, which honestly surprised him. Shizuo knew Tom didn't like Izaya, but he supposed it was human nature to not want someone starved to death.<p>

He didn't even want it. The blond debt collector sighed, running his hands through his hair. The black haired informant was really honestly too complicated. Even in high school, they had a mutual dislike, but for some reason it felt like a fueling rivalry. Someone he had to aim even with his strength, even if he hated violence. The flea was someone he could go all out with, vending machines and all.

He instigated fights even. Izaya was never scared of him when he had death in his eyes. It was somewhat calming to know that no matter how much he threw, that cockroach would just keep scurrying around. Resting his head down on his pillows, he tried to sleep. Though sleep didn't come easily. Thoughts were racing through his head. Tom had pointed out that if they had went that far on Izaya, maybe they would do something as rash to get him back.

For some reason, he didn't want the flea to get hurt, besides the fact that he wanted to stop whatever the flea had unleashed onto the city. In a childish way he supposed he didn't want his rival to be beat into the ground by anyone else. Tightening his grasp in his mottled sheets he sighed. "Honestly Flea…you're probably laughing at me right now."

"Now why would I do that, Shizu-chan?"

Taking in a sharp intake of breath, he looked behind him, expecting that shit-eating grin and glowing red eyes, but he only saw empty air and the closed bathroom door. Groaning he looked back to his lamp, glaring at it. Obviously such a crappy lamp that was off was causing hallucinations. The flea wasn't allowed in his house anyways.

Izaya had become the center of his life so quickly. He paid visits to Shinra just to see the flea's heart monitor beep. He wasn't dead. He was breathing. For some reason he just felt the need to keep checking up on him. As if he would die if he didn't. That flea probably was enjoying it. Could people…even know that? Shinra said he was comatose, but it just seemed…like the flea knew everything.

He remembered Shinra saying he was a light sleeper in the past, but no matter what he did; Izaya didn't wake up, or even make any faces. That wasn't the flea he knew. Who knew if when he woke up if he would be the same Izaya? "Gahhhh. Stupid flea! You're making my damn head hurt!" Shizuo could swear that he heard the flea laughing, but he knew he wasn't there.

Throwing the covers off, he huffed. That flea was going to be the end of him he cursed. Standing up, he scratched his hip absently. Shizuo made his way to the bathroom door, only wanting to wash his face to calm himself down, but instead of his somewhat-clean bathroom, he saw Shinra staring back at him.

Squawking he flailed ungracefully and pointed at the charcoal haired man, something that sounded like a choked version of a tirade of curses. "What the fuck are you doing in bathroom?" He shrieked out not amused to see Shinra's somewhat amused face. Hearing Shinra voice just irritated him. Great. Another weird stupid thing happening in Ikebukuro.

Did it honestly like…ever end? Hearing the accusation of sleepwalking, he let out a snarl. "I seriously just came in my bathroom! What the hell is going on?" It would be nice if Shinra actually answered him for once. He felt like throwing a table. The…humming even stopped. Widening his eyes at his just realization of the lack of humming, he narrowed his eyes just afterwards.

Izaya.

Snarling, he stormed into Shinra's house without a care stomping his way to the living room, where Celty was heading. Seeing the flea standing up, calmed his rage a little, but not by much. The brunette-black haired man still had some explaining to do. However seeing the flea spread his arms wide, distracted him as his voice started.

He was hearing the flea sing. Regretfully he wasn't horribly bad, so he could laugh. Izaya was actually singing well. The words he could barely make out, the ones made his heart stop beating in rage, as he relaxed. The flea's song shouldn't be so…sad but calming. From what he was making out, Izaya was saying,

"_In your shadow, resurrected, with that name tied to feelings I had forgotten  
>Each time I call you awake, you twist<br>Even if the many words I say that gather like snow are just to protect my weak heart  
>I carry an incessant loneliness, and so I<br>Erase you once again  
>I pretend to not see the pain I should have hidden away since that day<br>Changing color gradually beside  
>Having lost my reason for living I just, for my own sake<br>Close my eyes and forget everything as I sleep."_

In the time that he decided to mentally translate the gibberish that Izaya was saying, he looked up startled when he stared in pure red eyes. He couldn't even see the pupil or the whites of Izaya's eyes. Pure bright liquid crimson. It sent a shiver down Shizuo's spine, and he couldn't look away. Izaya was…staring at him.

This…was Izaya? He looked tired, lonely, sullen…he couldn't think of any other words like it to describe his rival. Izaya shouldn't look like that. He should still have the same evil glare, not this…other worldly look. Like the super powered people in the movies. The ones that knew everything. Kasuka showed him a movie once. He called the oracles maybe? It was so long ago, he could be completely wrong.

Black lashes only made the red eyes stand out more, and Shizuo gulped before he could help himself. Izaya…was a monster. At the small smile he saw, his heart cracked. No, Izaya wasn't a monster, but he wasn't a human either. This man who taunted him and made him get into so much trouble, was just like him. Cursed.

Staring up at Izaya, with not a new found recognized sense or anything stupid like that. Though, Shizuo now realized why he and Izaya were rivals. They were just as cursed as each other. As Izaya's haunted voice continued to sing, he realized that he didn't know the curse his rival lived with. Tightening his hands into fists, he realized that he needed to know.

Needed to know what this curse was.

Looking to the ground, feeling unease creep through his veins he looked up letting out a yelp as Izaya was right in front him. When did he even move? Drawn to those red eyes he felt the song calm him down, to where he just wanted to curl up to sleep. This…was Izaya's song wasn't it? Why did the flea's songs and the like calm him down, but the flea himself riled him up?

Did he have to be so damned confusing?

"_I erase all I am, up until now."_

Hearing the flea's voice, he felt surrounded by power that he didn't know the flea possessed or that he could feel in the first place. The blond haired debt collector stared into those eyes until he felt like he was about to pass out. Pulling his gaze to what he saw moving behind Izaya made his blood run cold and close his eyes.

Why…did the flea have black feathers like that?

* * *

><p>AN:<p>

To the music people were wondering what I drew on, Celty is hearing one of Zektbach songs, I believe, though I'm not one hundred percent sure it's called Panta Rhei. To the one Shizuo is hearing is a remix of a Touhou Song. It's called Myosotis alpestris, and the subs are on Youtube. I really like the song myself, and with the mystery that I know of, I thought it would be a cool confusing song to use. Shinra's…well I have no idea. I didn't take inspiration for that anywhere. I really hope people liked this, and thank you all so very much for your reviews. They mean a lot.


	4. Chapter 4

**Nightingale**

"_**Chained in Darkness"**_

Shizuo woke with a start. His sheets clung to his sweaty body as he panted, pushing his slipping hair up with his hands as he stared wide eyed in front of him. That…was a dream. Izaya wasn't singing still, in fact he didn't hear Izaya at all. Dropping his hands, he rested his arms on his parted legs. His breath tried to even out in vain. Whatever that flea did, he felt more energized than he had in years.

Not even chases made him feel this _alive. _It was the strangest thing in his opinion. His heart felt like it was running into his rib cage, backing up and ramming it once more. Shizuo felt like he had just run twenty miles, caught the flea, and gave him a good hit, and was so energized he was up for another twenty miles. If that lame description even came close to what he felt like, he was lucky.

Leaning against his pillows, he swore that whatever the flea did, gave him some good at least. Seeing Izaya's eyes though…made him realized that being cursed…wasn't just a one person thing. The people he was close to thought he knew about, he didn't know everything. Hearing Izaya's voice repeat in his head, made his blood light aflame with his ramming heart.

He dazedly looked over to his ringing phone. The clock next to it blared the time as two in the morning, almost teasing him that he had to get up in four hours. Grabbing his phone lazily, feeling his blood thrum through his veins in an almost static way, he answered the phone lazily. "Shizuo?" Shinra's voice seemed so far away. The blood was pounding through his ears.

He never felt so good. This was the high he didn't have to worry about controlling his strength. He had none left after whatever he just woke up from. "Shizuo…this might sound like an odd question, but uhm…"

"Spit it out Shinra."

"…Did you just have a dream of Izaya? Celty and I did." Shizuo's eyes widened and he gulped slightly. This…wasn't just a dream? Izaya actually appeared with those...eyes? "Yeah." It slipped out of his mouth before he could stop it. Shinra paused with whatever he was babbling about (Something about mind links and how it was theoretically possible with the right equipment), and sighed quietly.

"I woke up at my desk, Celty woke up in her room, and I suppose you just woke up. Izaya…is still hooked up to the machine. He didn't move. The heart monitor however picked up an erratic heartbeat."

"So?"

"Shizuo, the normal human body couldn't handle the heart beat. There would be no way that blood was running through his system at the time. His heart was beating too fast. He should be dead."

His droll tone showed how stumped the doctor was. If that was true, and Izaya didn't move, what did happen? They all heard him didn't they? "He was singing. Did you two hear him? He was singing something about snow and words…he kinda sounded really girly. Something about shadows." Shizuo tried to piece what he remembered the clearest, and heard a pause from the doctor.

"No. I heard screaming. Hold on. Let me ask Celty." He could hear the doctor distantly ask her, and there was a long pause of silence before Shinra came back on. "She heard violins and chanting." Shinra mumbled something that Shizuo didn't catch but it sounded annoyed. "I woke up with a headache, and Celty woke up feeling like she was flying. What about you?"

"I…" Shizuo paused. No, he was sure what he felt. "I was alive. I never felt so…energized."

"So Celty was right…it targets what you're feeling and exploits it, but in opposite ways of what Izaya intends…or what he wishes us to hear. Tomorrow, come over and maybe we can figure this all out. I need sleep, and I need to cuddle up with my Irish-"Wincing slightly as he heard Shinra groan, he guessed Celty hit him.

"Good night Shizuo." He huffed out before hanging up the phone. Honestly, Shizuo had no idea what was going on. Numbly he closed the phone and set it back down. The blond had no idea what to think at this point. First, Izaya disappears. Eagle said that it was his fault, and Shizuo didn't think he was lying. Then Izaya shows up in the middle of town, starved.

Then, next thing he knows, Izaya's singing at the top of his lungs while dead asleep and his lips sealed shut. Great. Shinra said it targeted or exploited what they felt, but he didn't think it really messed with anything. Shizuo had felt so calm the past few days, he was elated. He didn't have to control his anger, or his strength. His smoking even decreased.

Running his right hand through his hair, glad his heart decided to stop being so troublesome, he slithered down under his sheets and sighed quietly. "Flea. I don't know what you're doing, but I'm not forgiving you. Just dealing with you in another way."

"Shizu-chan, you're a monster only capable of violence~" He heard Izaya's voice.

"And you're a flea only capable of running his mouth, that even when it's shut, he torments the living that don't care."

"I wish it didn't." He heard the voice mumble and he swore that wasn't his imagination that conjured that up, but at this point he didn't care. He was going to sleep.

* * *

><p>Shizuo kept his word and showed up the next day, looking at the comatose informant. His eyes weren't open, and he supposed he really wasn't surprised. Sitting on the chair, tilting backwards, he let out a long suffering sigh. Celty spoke up first, clicking on her phone.<p>

_[Last night, I just was thinking of Izaya when…I kept hearing him cry. It was the strangest thing. I had this urge to protect a lost child, as if I was a mother. It was the oddest thing, since I feel nothing but indifference towards Izaya. At least it started out that way. Now I can only see him as the small child who cried.] _

Celty felt like a mother to the flea? He remembered that the flea's mother was still alive. He even heard those two sisters of the louse talk about their mother and father. Did Izaya even talk to them anymore? Probably not. They didn't sound much like they cared about the informant.

Shinra made a humming sound in thought. "I was thinking of Izaya as well, his blood tests came back normal. I was thinking about how his blood type matched his personality. Next thing I know, I hear screaming, as if someone's in pain, and then an echo, then another echo of that echo, and it just kept going on and on."

Shizuo sighed once more, looking over to the sleeping man. "You're a confusing mindfuck you know that, louse?"

"He tends to do that."

Flailing, Shizuo almost fell out of his chair as Eagle appeared standing over him. Finally staggering it to a halt, he snarled. Raising an eyebrow, the blond intruder shrugged. Shinra didn't seem surprised, but he just had that lazy grin on his face if he already knew Eagle was there.

Honestly, that was getting annoying.

"Hello Eagle. Mind telling us what's going on?" Celty edged closer to the black haired doctor, and he seemed to feel safe in Celty's presence enough to act out his questions. Did no one care that this guy was probably just as psycho as Izaya and was going to go crazy on him with a knife or something?

Blue eyes met mocha. "You don't care about him Shizuo, do you?"

"Of course not. Like I would care about the louse." The debt collector snorted.

"It's good to know Izaya was wrong then."

"..Wrong?" Echoed Shizuo, feeling like admitted to something without fully understanding it. He did that quite often, despite his efforts not to.

"You're not special. You're not a monster; you're just a human with no soul. A disgusting creature with no purpose but listen to those who sing above you. The birds will never look favorably on such a creature."

Blinking, realizing that Eagle just insulted him, he snarled. Obviously the other blond didn't care for him and he was going to knock the smug smirk off his psycho face.

"But Izaya sings to you, so you must be at least somewhat important to him."

Rage dissipated slightly, the distraction holding it back. Walking over to the coal-haired informant, giving a small glance to the Dullahan he sighed. Holding his hand out over the informant the sparkly miasma showed up again. The stupid sparkly miasma in Shizuo's opinion. Of course the louse has to be healed with something that looks like a firecracker.

He's just that showy.

"You're hurt." Shizuo turned to blink at the scientist who pushed his glasses up on his nose. "You're limping. Izaya's enemies I guess?" The blond debt collector supposed he had been caught up in a rage to not see that obvious sign.

Eagle gave a small laugh, as if he was expecting it. "You deserve all the compliments Izaya gives you, Doctor. Yes, I'm still protecting you and that…black haired man in the hospital." Shizuo's eyes widened, mocha appearing much more vivid.

"Don't you dare lay a hand on Tom!"

Eagle turned his head annoyed. "I said that I was protecting him you brutish dolt. Honestly, you get deserve every single insult you get from Izaya." Shizuo growled stepping forward. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Celty move but his heart stopped when he heard the debt collector move. His eyes whipped towards the now slightly more curled up…but still comatose informant.

Eagle made a small sound, and the miasma disappeared. "He's horrible. Fighting me the whole way."

"When are we going to stop hearing his annoying ass voice?" Shizuo gritted out.

"Hm? Hopefully not too much longer. You see it was around before, but you were incapable of hearing it because Izaya wished it that way."

"…You mean the flea always sang like a girl?"

The blank look from Eagle before he started to snicker made his hackles rise wishing to tackle the man into the ground and bludgeon him. "N-No." Eagle finally forced out. "He doesn't exactly sound like a girl."

Rolling his eyes, he stood up to his full height, glaring at the informant. He could see color back into his face, and he couldn't see the bones sticking out of his wrist as much. Though in his mind he could see the overlap without his consent.

"Eagle, we've been pretty nice." The doctor chirped, gaining the attention of both blonds. "Do you mind answering some questions? I'm not going to ask what I don't need to know, nor do you need to answer, but if we're protecting him, we should at least know something, right?"

The blond-blue eyed man nodded. "Fine. If you ask the right question, I'll give you a correct answer, if possible."

Shizuo had the urge to wring his neck.

Though he had that urge with the informant often.

"Izaya…is healing, but not by traditional means. Are you the only one able to heal him?"

Eagle pondered the question before shaking his head. "All of you could heal him if you wished."

"We wish." The debt collector informed blankly.

"Wishing and able to do it are two different things."

Shinra, sensing a bickering argument sighed. "Is Izaya going to ever return to his normal self? Health wise?"

"You mean his underweight skinny stick self? Yes."

"Is Izaya human?"

"He's more human than you could ever be. The curse just made him stand out."

Shizuo snorted, obviously not believing him.

"He can't be human though. There is no possible way he can have that effect on people, heal through that, and honestly with that heartbeat he had last night, there is no possible way he is still human."

Eagle narrowed his eyes, obviously irritated.

"Humans don't have a heartbeat that fast." Gesturing to the heart monitor, he continued. "He's always had an elevated heart rate since he's been here, opposite to his lower body weight, and he never seemed stressed, and nothing else could cause a human to have such a high heart rate without killing them."

"I don't like that you're calling him inhuman."

"I didn't say it was a bad thing. Inhuman just gives a name to what the physical impossibilities are. He shouldn't have been alive. He's alive, but he's not healing by traditional means. To be honest, he should be in the care of around the clock nurses, not stuck in my apartment lifeless."

"So he's a burden to you." Eagle seemed to follow a line of thought that Shizuo wasn't following.

"In a way yes. He had no choice; he's had no choices, so I can't exactly blame Izaya for ending up here. Shizuo brought him here, which was his choice. You healed him, but everyone seems perfectly fine watching Izaya sit there like a lifeless corpse." Shinra was obviously irritated, but Shizuo couldn't understand why.

It's not like either of them cared for the flea that much…Shinra always seemed closer to him though. Did seeing Izaya like that really affect him so badly?

"Would you like to see how human Izaya is? All of you?" Eagle suddenly sounded calm. "I can't say the Dullahan won't attack me if I show you, but I'll show you what you're dealing with, Izaya's protector."

Shinra seemed pleased that he was finally getting somewhere, but it didn't make sense to Shizuo. Shizuo didn't hear anything that answered the doctor's question. How on earth could he be pleased with this guy just running around in circles?

"Please."

"As you wish."

Shizuo knew this was going to be a bad idea.

* * *

><p>Hearing voices murmuring irritated Izaya horribly. Couldn't they love him and shut up? It was probably a group of cavemen like Shizuo. Shizu-chan and a group of cavemen. He guessed Shizu-chan finally had a home. Among his obviously like-minded community. The coal-haired informant mentally giggled to himself, honestly amused with the idea of Shizuo carrying around a wooden club.<p>

It was like an ancient version of Shizuo. Instead of a club, he now carried a giant sign post and tried to flatten him with it. Which this fact, sadly reminded him that his bloody head felt like it was slammed into. Since he guessed that he could feel his lower body, despite how irritatingly numb it was, that it didn't hit his skull hard enough to dislocate his head from his spinal cord, or any of his backbone was hurt. That was wonderful news. To him anyways.

It would completely suck if his back was broken.

In that completely suck, life shattering sort of term that he used with his little humans. He believed that was the term. He used it before on the chats. Mentally sighing, he decided to explore what was actually working in his numb body. The first thing he noticed besides the aching head that he felt his stomach was eating itself.

He felt his insides twist in pain, and he didn't honestly know if he felt such internal pain before. External pain maybe, those vending machines to the sides hurt, despite Shizu-chan's rough play ethic. He felt pain, but it felt also like all his senses were dull. Izaya guessed pain-meds. He didn't like such things running around in his body, but he wasn't an idiot.

If it hurt this much with the pain-meds, it was surely going to feel like his body was on fire if he didn't have them. Which was a pity, he supposed. He didn't like internal fire. Though most people didn't like most internal fire. If your body was having an internal fire it normally melts your brain which well, proves Izaya's mental point that you really hated internal fires.

He still felt dazed, but every moment he felt a nerve ending sending a jolt of either pain or tingling numbness through his body and he supposed a slow wake up was better than a quick wake up that possibly only would make him pass out again. He couldn't even remember the last time he was awake. After being captured, he did his best to block everything out.

The crimson eyed man however, knew that his stomach decided to go nom on his muscle mass. Nom, he liked that word for eating. He didn't know if the cat made him actually like the word though. But oh well. He didn't exactly care at the moment. He was spacing out again. Though a certain feeling was creeping up his body, he knew very well. The curse of a curse he supposed.

Feeling it inch through his veins he wished he could scratch it out of his skin. Feeling it slither through his bloodstream made his body shudder. Izaya was waking up, and he wasn't sure he was going to enjoy it.

* * *

><p>Shinra wasn't sure what made him want to provoke Eagle into telling him something. The irritation that was consuming him was starting to gnaw on his patience like some starving dog after meat. Staring at Izaya, he convinced himself it was only to get Izaya better. Doctors did no harm. The Hippocratic Oath.<p>

He must not play God.

Staring at Izaya, he realized that he was much more helpless than he realized. He didn't know. He didn't know anything. He had to know for his patient. For future patients. Watching those blue eyes smirk at him made him blink, and he wished he never did. The first realization was that he, Shizuo, and his darling Celty weren't in the same room.

The second realization was Izaya was on the floor, not attached to any machines.

The third was the giant dog like creature above him snarling. The dog was probably the size of four cars piled together, and three cars long. The eyes were back in its head, ears flopped to the side, and Shinra remembered one from his childhood. It was a monster version of a Retriever. The paws were the size of a large two hundred pound man balled up and he swore the claws were bigger than a human arm.

He could see the bones, the veins, and the tendons all working, and for some reason that cemented that the dog was very much real in Shinra's mind.

His eyes widened behind glasses as the golden dog roared at them. Celty appeared in front of him and he saw the shadows try to reach forth, but the white room they were in, this room with no walls, no floor, no ceiling, hanging in space, obviously didn't like that, and the shadows shrunk away as if they were burned.

He must walk the line of death and life. Remember what a frail human he was, and treat other frail humans with care.

Crazily, Shinra had remembered the modern version of the oath, the one that Americans used to this day. Staring into the blue eyed monster he realized that humans were much frailer in the grasps of monsters.

"Stop seeing everything in two dimensions you pathetic human."

The pale man stared up at the now talking Eagle, the dog he guessed and felt his heart rate increase and enters dangerous levels, but he could feel his blood thrumming but the feeling of his heart was numb.

"This man saved my life."

Before Shinra could stop himself, he repeated what he and Shizuo constantly said. "He's a detestable person, a monster."

The dog's muzzle covered in scars, wrinkled to show white teeth, one of his canines sawed leaving a blunt edge. The only crazy comparison was that the dog's teeth were the size up half a human torso. He heard Shizuo say something, but he was honestly less important than the large drooling and very pissed off dog. Eagle roared again, his teeth showing and Shinra barely repressed a gulp.

"Neh. Shinra~ that isn't nice! I'm a human just like you are!"

Eagle was suddenly back in that human form, Shizuo was standing mere inches from the now awake Izaya, and Celty was still in front of him.

Izaya was staring at them with his same manic smile, those same vivid eyes, and Shinra had the crazy thought of actually celebrating that this menace was awake.

"Izaya! You're not supposed to be up!" Eagle snapped out, rounding on the coal-haired informant.

Raising an eyebrow the red eyed man chuckled. "You were threatening the doctor that was taking care of me. Does that sound like a reason to get up, Eagle?"

"Oh good. You seem to get your same little snippy kitten self back despite being starved to death. He called you inhuman."

Izaya blinked. Then his shoulders started to shake, and Shinra stared confused before that concern melted to mild annoyance as Izaya threw his head back and started to laugh.

"Flea." Shizuo growled threateningly, which only made the coal-hair man hold his stomach as he laughed harder. He doubled over and stopped laughing after a bit, wheezing. "My stomach hurts."

"That's because you are half dead, Izaya." Shinra retorted in monotone.

The red eyed man opened his mouth before Eagle snapped. "No Izaya. You are not going on one of your rants. I don't think any of us could handle that."

A pout worked its way on the informant's face, and Shinra for once felt better. This was the annoying Izaya they all knew. For the first time he felt calm. Though he highly doubted that it was going to last long.

"Neh, can I go on a half-rant?"

The smile that worked its way onto Shinra's lips was the first amused smile that had been on his lips in awhile.

* * *

><p>AN Izaya is awake! And I have re-wrote this chapter about 4 times and I'm still not truly happy about it. I honestly think I skipped over a few parts, since once I got to 12 pages on Word, I'm pretty sure I was dragging it on too long. Next chapter we'll figure out some clues, and get some shady foreshadowing on Izaya's capturer.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Crystals for Hearts

* * *

><p>Eagle sighed running his fingers through his hair, obviously annoyed. Izaya. "These idiots are going to kill you! Izaya seemed less than amused, before shrugging. "They think you're a monster!"<p>

The coal-haired informant sighed before giving an irritated look, one Shizuo hadn't seen before. "What defines a monster? What doesn't define a monster? What defines the definition?" Oh just dandy, Izaya was going through another one of his rants that Shizuo couldn't follow at the moment and didn't want to. Did he always have to be so infuriatingly annoying?

"You know sacrificing yourself for them isn't going to make anyone happy! Not like they would do the same!"

"Cause they want me dead~? Izaya responded easily. Izaya was sacrificing himself for someone? Did the flea even know what sacrifice meant? Shizuo wanted to punch _himself_ that time, because obviously Izaya went through enough to prove that he was willing. Of course whoever he was trying to help, hated him. That was perfectly normal.

"I don't want you to be another one of his victims!"

"I don't either." The red-eyed informant shrugged.

"What the hell is going on?" Shizuo finally spoke up, which made Eagle growl. "Fine Izaya. Get your strength back on your own. Obviously you want to be some stupid sacrifice for people who don't even know what you are."

With that, his body faded just like it had before, leaving Shizuo with a giant headache. Did all of Izaya's friends have the most annoying chip on their shoulder, or what? Either Izaya hung out with people that were annoying, or the whole world was full of annoying fleas with shiny miasma powers or something.

"Oh, just an argument Shizu-chan~" Izaya decided to humor or annoy him with a response. He didn't even sound half dead. However before Shizuo could say anything, he saw the skeleton that was Izaya before and he swallowed his rage. Sadly enough, he could say a live flea, at least looked better than a dead flea.

Shinra finally decided to get himself off the ground, setting his glasses in place. "Izaya?" Red eyes slid to give an amused glance towards the scientist. "Yes~?" He asked, his mouth curving into that familiar smirk. Shizuo's hackles rose just at the sight of it, but looking at Izaya, he just remembered the skeleton, and swallowed his annoyance once more. It was better than anything before. "Do...you mind telling us what's going on?" Shinra asked, gesturing to the whole room.

Izaya blinked once before shrugging. "I don't think you want to know. Someone got to me, put me a cage and decided to play with me." Shinra shook his head, tsking. "Not that Izaya. The...other things. The singing, the energy, all those things." Izaya's eyes glinted, and Shizuo was suddenly aware that Izaya knew exactly what happened, and was playing stupid. Growling he stomped forward, snatching up Izaya's wrist roughly. "Louse." Izaya didn't answer, and Shizuo tightened his grip, paling softly when he heard a sickening crack.

Snatching his hand back, Izaya cradled it to his chest, and Shizuo looked away guiltily. He broke Izaya's wrist, or at least that's what he thought. Shinra sputtered and flew forwards, and tried to get Izaya to relinquish his arm. "Come on, let me see it. You two are too rough with each other." Shizuo was expecting a comment about him being a brute to come out of the coal-haired informant's mouth. However he heard nothing but heavy breathing.

Shizuo felt guilty, obviously Izaya just came from hell and back, and he had the monster-like strength to snap his twig like bones in half. He didn't mean to! Izaya was just too fragile! The debt collector wanted to take off, but Shinra gave him a small glare and he stayed rooted to the spot. "Come on Izaya." Shinra for once sounded a bit annoyed but Izaya swatted his hand with the uninjured one. Finally Shinra yanked his arm, and made a small sound of surprise.

Shizuo and Celty peered closer, and Shizuo blinked confused. His mocha eyes weren't lying to him, neon red outlines of a six sided shapes. What were six sided shapes again? He learned that, hexa...hexag...hexagons? Who the hell cared, why were they on his wrist and arm, and why were they glowing? He swore his eye twitched, staring at those things. Great. The flea glowed red. The flea glowed. Is he the only one who thought this was completely confusing and impossible for a normal human?

"Izaya, you're glowing." Shinra stated blandly and Izaya finally snatched his hand back.

"I'm a firefly." Izaya commented sarcastically, cradling his wrist back against his chest. "It's not broken." He finally sighed, showing his wrist again. The marks were gone. Shizuo frowned. He felt the bones give way. They did break. He couldn't even control his own strength! Digging his nails into his palms, he opened his eyes to stare at Izaya. Just...the louse he always tried to kill. He didn't even look human with his that skinny body.

A small chuckle, which he swore was only in his mind, before the singing started to drift calmly in his ears. Shizuo wasn't how to describe it. It was like someone put water in glass, and then made the glass disappear, and the water not stuck in the form just spilled. He felt so relaxed, tired, and calm at the same time. His muscles didn't feel as if they were holding strength in them, he was utterly mush. Celty seemed to notice, Shinra was much too busy making sounds and looking at every possible inch of skin on the informant's wrist.

_'You okay?'_

He shook his head in an affirmative. He never felt more relaxed in his life just standing. Singing? He muttered, and then the song suddenly stopped. It was like one of those records that suddenly skipped, and then nothing played. It took a few moments as he dazedly stared at Izaya. His head was down, his uninjured hand trembling in his lap. Was the flea scared? "Shinra~" He sang happily, taking his wrist away from the doctor. I need to sleep~ Do you mind?"

Shinra apparently did mind, but a jab to his back from the Dullahan made him reluctantly nod his acceptance. We're talking tomorrow, Izaya. Izaya smiled, and Shizuo stared at him for a moment, noting how pale he was. Did that red stuff hurt him? No, it healed his wrist...so what was going on? The music was practically gone as well. Did Izaya try to turn it off? Why? Why did he even want the song in his head?

Great. He was going crazy. It was the entire flea's fault.

* * *

><p>Finally Shizuo, Shinra, and Celty left, and Izaya slowly curled back under the covers. This curse was finally coming apparent. Narrowing his eyes on the white sheets, his fists tightened. Evolving wasn't going to save him this time. The past was going to kill him one way or another. He could only wish that it was his cute little humans going to make him meet his untimely demise, but sadly only monsters were outside.<p>

His body felt cold, numb, and it felt like something was crawling through his blood like some sludge. Shuddering his red eyes stared at the dark room, there were no windows. Light filtered in from the cracked door, and he heard the TV. Closing his eyes, he sighed softly. He didn't want Shinra or Celty to know about this...or Shizuo. He didn't even really know what was going on himself. The informant grumbled internally.

He knew...bits and pieces of what was going on, but his sluggish mind felt like it was stepping through mud. All he remembered at the moment was that smirk and those blue eyes. That stupid monster. Izaya swore to himself that he would crush that monster. He didn't care about being a sacrifice, or whatever, this was his fight. He would even protect Shizuo if he had to. This was his fight. These were his people, his puzzles, and his pet monster.

Like hell he was going to allow some white winged freak to poke his nose into this game. Ikebukuro, Japan was his. All his. Izaya growled deeply in his chest, slamming his fist against the bed hearing the muted thump.

Above him, unnoticed in his rage a small bird stared down at the red eyed man. Its wings dripped in black like tar, and red eyes took in the sight of the informant. White letters spun in the red circles, before blinking them away. Spreading its wings, tar flying uselessly from its wings, it disappeared when it hit the surfaces around it. With a silent caw, it flew up into the ceiling, hazing to black dust.

* * *

><p>Shizuo lit up a cigarette, leaning against the pillows in his bed. He was confused, lost and he didn't think he was going to be making sense of this mess anytime soon. Izaya was just always confusing. Mind games fit him, because he was screwed up himself. Breathing out the smoke, he ran his free hand through his hair. Izaya...was a freak. Mental freak, he knew. But he was just as screwed up as Shizuo was. Is that why they 'got along' so well? Because they were both monsters?<p>

He was cursed. He was a monster. So was Izaya. Izaya knew everything that he went through probably. Not everyone was the same, and just because they had the same afflictions they might grow up differently. He knew that. Kasuka was horridly different from him. Izaya's sisters were pretty nice, though a bit strange. Though it was pretty hard not to be different from Izaya.

Red eyes staring at him like that...he didn't know what Izaya went through. He didn't doubt that Izaya was the same bastard. Nor just because of the way he grew up, that wasn't an excuse to how he acted...but maybe he could understand the slippery louse more? Maybe he could understand him more if he did. Maybe he could figure out what's going on.

Plus...maybe he could hear that singing again. He felt irritated. That song was there...but it was so muted it sound like there was a pillow in front a speaker. He hated it. Shizuo was a bit irked, but honestly liked the music. It calmed him down. He liked feeling like a normal person for once. Life wasn't stressful. He wasn't smoking as much. All those things were amazing to him. They were...unachievable things without Izaya's stupid singing.

Things were going to end badly, he knew it...but he just wanted to feel normal for once, he didn't care what he had to do to have it happen.

Stupid flea.

* * *

><p>The morning came with no issues, no singing, no weird dreams, it was all normal. Which meant everything was going wrong. Shizuo had the horror of someone flying down the street half naked, Shinra fell asleep in the shower and almost drowned, and Celty tried to cook and almost set the kitchen on fire. Izaya however slept though it all, his breathing slow and deep, his eyes tightly closed. Shizuo visited Tom, and it was good to hear he was getting out of the hospital in a week, but he would still be off the job for at least another three weeks.<p>

Shizuo wasn't honestly that surprised, but he still didn't like that he had to do nothing for three more weeks. However it gave him time to reflect on Izaya's situation and his own. Izaya was a monster, he always was, even without Shizuo's knowledge of the weird and creepy singing, the red shapes on his arm, and that apparently the flea was radioactive or something. Relaxing in the park, he stared at his phone with a small sigh. No calls. Not that there ever were.

Izaya had taken up all his time now. Somehow he missed throwing things at his face and the devilish grin he wore. Even if it was just missing the chance to knock it off his face, it was in fact, missed. Did Izaya seek him out because he was a monster? Because he was different than all his 'humans'? Izaya was an ass. There was no doubt with it. Being arrested and run over twice was the tip top of the 'being a bastard' totem pole. However if he really was a monster just like Shizuo, was that really surprising?

Maybe he was the monster in the mind, while he was in body? He could remember Izaya's bones crushing like a plastic cup being gripped too hard. Anyone could do that. He hated the flea, but he could understand why. Understanding why didn't give reason, but he could at least understand it. That was the one thing he could do. Understand. The singing was following him around like a muted buzzing.

He was going to figure why people were after the flea. Monsters only had monsters.

Standing up, he walked to Shinra's on autopilot. Anything, hoping that Izaya was awake and was going to tell him what happened. Biting his lip he saw that face in his eyes. 'Monsters' never should look like the dead. Ever.

* * *

><p>Izaya woke up to his door being slammed open. If not for the yelp and hands on his shoulders, he would have shot out of the bed and stabbed the intruder. However he was at Shinra's and Shizuo had no sense of decency. Stupid brutes were stupid after all. "Okay, let's get this over with. Flea. Tell us everything."<p>

What did Shizuo care anyways? Not like it concerned him. "I'm not sure what I'm supposed to tell you." He answered coolly. "Tell me what you want to hear. I don't think my secret obsession with girly key chains has anything to do with this Shizu-chan." Faking surprise he put his hand over his mouth in sarcasm. "Whoops." Shizuo's fists tightened and his eyebrow ticked. Izaya felt like a contented cat lapping from his milk bowl. A smirk on his face and his eyes slit with feline glee.

"What are you?" Well Shinra seemed to dislike their conversation. Pity, he liked that comeback. "Human" Izaya answered with a pout. "I'm human. Born human, and will evolve far beyond normal humans." Celty seemed to step in, and he had to lean back a little to see the cell phone shoved in his face. _'You are human and something else'_ He read her statement, mulling it over in his head. It was true, the curse that he knew of, that he remembered with every fiber of his being, wasn't human, but at the same time was nothing but human.

"I don't know what the other part is, and I'm being honest. I was never told." He answered truthfully. Izaya say no point to lie at the moment, he had to keep scrounging for information. "What happened while I was out, besides the singing?" Shinra gave him a small innocent look, "Besides the screaming, violins, crying, and then making us all hallucinate the same dream? Not much." Izaya blinked almost opening his mouth in a 'Wha' but he realized that his 'ability' may have gone out of control while he was out.

Which that honestly wasn't surprising, since he often dealt with it in his sleep. "I see. It seems it got a bit out of hand. The curse." He admitted. "What was the dream?" He desperately needed to know what was revealed. Construct his mask over again, and never let these people near him. You had to stay away. You had to keep an eye on them, but not let them get so close. He had to know what happened; being truthful would benefit him, no matter how annoying it was.

"We all heard you doing a weird song...you were singing, but you never left the bed...Shizuo appeared in the apartment, but we were all sleeping. Yet we all in the same place and we had the same dream." The red eyed informant blinked at the doctor's statement. He never heard of that before, nor did he think the curse was even possible of such a...impossible feat. He didn't even remember singing or any of it. His eyes narrowed softly, and he shrugged weakly. "Shinra, you're as confused as I am." Not really, Izaya admitted, he knew a bit what was happening.

"Eagle, that's your friend correct?" Shinra clicked his tongue, switching the subject. Izaya knew Shinra well enough that his tone of voice wasn't a good one. Giving a toothy grin, he hid any insecure emotions under that mask, neatly tucking everything away. This was going nowhere good. "You could call him that~? Izaya answered. "He promised me you would give me something in return. Something modern science can't explain. Something your curse creates. Since you won't tell me anything of use maybe that will."

Izaya's eyes widened slightly, he knew exactly what Eagle was talking about. That backstabbing bastard!

"I see, he did something without my compliance." Letting out a small sigh he looked at Shinra, giving a small shrug. "Why do my people have to be so rash?" Shinra brightened a little, and Izaya inwardly mulled over the idea of giving him something else, but if he gave Shinra what it really was, he might be able to leave quicker…He highly doubted Shinra would be shocked or disgusted with the crystal-like blood form- after all he loved Celty for being such a monster.

"If you want that from me, you'll have to give me some things to let me separate it from what it's living on."

Shinra perked up, and Izaya was reminded of an excited puppy, wagging its tail for a ball. Giving a small glance towards the blond debt collector he sighed. Moving his gaze towards the headless woman, he could sense the uncertainty towards him. Was Shinra the only one who could accept he was cursed? Probably- Shizuo hated him, Celty was scared of him, and Shinra was an idiot. A friendly idiot.

"I need a scalpel, or at least my blade, and a container to keep it in- and I'm quite shy-"Shizuo snorted loudly to let his amusement show. "And you all can leave the room~ Shizu-chan, I'm sorry I know you want to see me naked! ~" Shizuo gave a look of pure horror in his direction, setting off Izaya who cackled like a madman, clutching his stomach. Shizuo's eyebrow twitched, his hands itching to probably break something in half.

"Shizuo!" Shinra yelped, standing in front of the cackling informant. "That information is mine; you can throttle him once he's better!" Izaya's cackling died down into chuckles. Shizuo huffed, "Yeah-yeah, he's just annoying as hell. Flea, you sing like a chick." Izaya blinked, his face for a few seconds deadpanning, and Shizuo grinned happily to get a proper reaction that was cackling. "I'm male." Izaya finally responded with a small grin. "I would let you check, but you'll have to take Shinra's word on it."

Shizuo glared and just walked out of the room, to avoid that stupid grinning face, Shinra rushing into action to make sure he got his sample, Celty following after Shizuo. Once Shinra left, his face fell. It was going to be painful.

Izaya lifted his sleeve, twitching his fingers, watching the crystals appear on his skin, bright red crystal like rock hexagon shapes crawled against his skin like spiders, and Izaya bit his lip, feeling the familiar pain stabbing him to his bone. Letting out a gasp, he grabbed the scalpel and stabbed his arm with a low whimper. Blood started pour of his wound almost immediately; the red crystals glowing with a strange light as Izaya yanked it out once more, driving it into his skin once more.

God he hated this curse.

* * *

><p>AN I'm –sooo- sorry for the wait. I have utterly failed fixing this chapter. I wrote it, then it disappeared, rewrote it, then the file got corrupted, so I had to delete half of it and rewrite it. So I've given up trying to write this. Again, thank you so much for the reviews; it makes my day-week-month. I did my best not to give up on this chapter. I'm sorry if it's a bit of a let down. I will do my best to speed up the story line just a bit, there's another one of these chapters before we get to the real plot. So I hope you all continue to keep reading!


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